US Politics, March 2024: The house of illuminati will NOT be holding any other event in the foreseeable future.

Hur: Have you ever driven a chariot?

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Scranton Joe

I was trying to explain to a coworker a sequence of events at work that I was deeply involved in around the same date range that Biden's testimony covered today and had to backtrack several times. I don't think there was a "gotcha" moment and they're lingering on whether he has photographic recall (he doesn't)

I freeze up almost every time I’m asked my kids’ birthdates, and often get them wrong even so.

Azi Paybarah:

Sort of funny that in a hearing focusing on President Biden’s alleged memory lapses — which his aides say are really verbal slips — that Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) himself just made a verbal slip, referring to Dana Remus incorrectly as President Barack Obama’s former White House counsel, instead of Biden’

is Biden....funny?

Republican Rep. Ken Buck announced Tuesday that he will leave the House on March 22, moving up his existing retirement plans.

Buck's decision will leave Republicans with a paltry 218 seats in the chamber, compared to Democrats' 213, furthering Speaker Mike Johnson's constant struggle to herd the House GOP and pass any legislation through regular order. Republicans can still only afford to lose two votes on any bill with united Democratic opposition, assuming full attendance.

Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters Tuesday that he didn’t know about Buck's departure plans shortly after the announcement, noting he is looking forward to talking to the Colorado Republican. A Buck spokesperson told POLITICO that Buck called Johnson about 30 minutes before the announcement went live and left a voicemail. The move caught many of Buck's GOP colleagues by surprise.

“This place has just devolved into this bickering and nonsense,” the conservative Colorado Republican said in an interview on CNN shortly after his announcement. "It’s the worst year in 40, 50 years to be in Congress.”

There's already a competitive primary to replace Buck in the red seat. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) jumped into that race for Colorado's 4th congressional district and moved across the state after she narrowly won reelection by just several hundred votes in her current district in 2022. Asked if Buck's announcement would shift her plans to run in his district, Boebert replied: “I’m running in the 4th.”

In Colorado, the governor is required to set a special election 85 to 100 days after the vacancy occurs. Candidates are nominated by the state party. The Buck spokesperson predicted it would occur in June, likely the same day as the primary election for the full term: June 25.

One member to go before we get Speaker Jeffries.

the squeaker of the house

It'll be hard for them to keep up their furious legislative pace after this

Running for Ken Buck's seat is . . . Lauren Boebert.

It could not possibly come too soon, but even if Jefferies won the speakership I wouldn't expect an avalanche of progressive bills. Mainly I'd expect passing the appropriations to fund the government would get somewhat easier. There's still the Senate filibuster out there to kill everything in sight.

Well, the two biggest blocks to filibuster reform--Sinema and Manchin--will both be gone, just in time for the GOP to take the Senate of course.

Boebert thinks she'll win in the 4th. I'm not so sure. It's pretty red, but not crazy red like (parts of) her old district.

didn't Bobo nearly lose in a Trump +30 district vs. some nobody the DNC wouldn't even fund

But that was before the Beetlejuice tape

xp Yeah, Adam Frisch. He is running in the 3rd again. I get pretty constant emails from his campaign.

The 4th includes Longmont, which is much larger and bluer than it used to be. This could be another win for the Dems.

Haha, RFK Jr floating Aaron Rodgers and Jesse Ventura as running mates. What a clown.

I wish he wasn't running but I also think he probably hurts Trump more than Biden, so w/e.

Especially if he does pick Rodgers.

Jesse Ventura was the most pro-mass transit Governor of Minnesota up to that point. He also tried to organize a union at the WWF, but Hulk Hogan ratted on him.

yeah, the Biden campaign should run some pro-RFK ads.. "This guy is the REAL Trump! He's too conservative for America, and doesn't believe in forced vaccinations!"

If he's ever seen as a serious threat by anyone other than bored journalists, the campaign that feels most threatened by him will burn him to the ground in a weekend.

I actually hope he does pick Rodgers just to see the inevitable Trump meltdown over another "betrayal".

Rodgers would be a hilarious pick. My only hope for Biden is that Trump picks an absolute freak as his VP. I got a little scared when Tim Scott was rumored but the latest news that he was looking at JD Vance or Katie Britt has given me hope.

lol Tim Scott would not win over a single important Black constituency c'mon

They may not like Biden, they may sit out the election, but they're not voting for Tim Fucking Scott.

I think Tim Scott looks like Bert Lahr's Cowardly Lion.

My only hope for Biden is that Trump picks an absolute freak as his VP.

I can't parse this sentence. You think who Trump picks as VP will move the needle by either a) making people say, "Oh, that sensible person will moderate Trump — now I can safely vote for him!" or b) making people say, "Wow, I thought Trump was a little erratic, sure, but picking that freak as his new VP is a step too far!"?

It's boring to say so, but this election is Biden's to lose, and he'd have to faceplant in a major way to do it (and apologies to whoever doesn't want to hear it, but Gaza is not that faceplant).

I agree that it's Biden's to lose, but I also think it's possible he'll lose it not through any giant stumble but just by being old and uninspiring and perceived as ineffective. (I know he hasn't actually been ineffective, but this isn't gonna be decided on the facts or the merits.)

I think Trump's VP pick could hurt or help him on the margins, mostly in terms of some Republicans who are sick of him and could have a hard time voting for Kari Lake or someone like that. But not by much either way.

In 2016, his choice of Pence made evangelicals feel safer and more assured about voting for him, it did make a difference

I think he should pick Kid Rock now

what kind of sensible person would agree to be Trump's running mate? what exactly did Pence get out of it? his entire legacy now is the guy Trump supporters raided the Capitol trying to murder. his 2024 campaign ended in front of like 3 people at a bookstore.

I think Biden is in the same situation Hillary was - he *should* win but does have some weaknesses and if those happen to pop up 2 weeks before the election like the email thing did, he could lose the electoral college

that said I'm curious what all these Nikki Haley supporters who swore up and down they wouldn't vote for Trump are gonna do. obviously most of them will, but he kinda needs all of them to

Party Unity My Ass

I would just like to reiterate that if Trump wants to lose by an embarrassing margin, he’ll pick Tim Scott, who is to cultured for his fanbase and too Tim Scott for everyone else

otm

his 2024 campaign ended in front of like 3 people at a bookstore.

This was his destiny all along, with or without the VP credential. But blind ambition will ensure Trump has his choice of almost any VP candidate he decides on. Look how many DC insiders accepted cabinet level positions even after his administration was a train wreck and his penchant for feckless idiocy in the presidency was a 100% established fact.

Tim Scott, who is too cultured Black for his fanbase and too Tim Scott for everyone else

fixed

Frogbs - I think that's it. Trump 2024 as an electable inevitability reminds me heavily of Hillary 2016 (no shade at H.C., just viewing it as similar scenario). Trump '24 as Hillary '16? Let's do the list:

1. Mediocre primary performance? Check.
2. Primary opponent's vote share revealing a difficult truth regarding the stability of your coalition? Check.
3. Perception (once again, no shade, HC) that the nomination should be yours, and how dare anyone else even try? Check.
4. Underestimated, gaffe-prone opponent in the General Election? Check.
5. A non-insignificant chunk of your base dying an early death due to a global pandemic because they refused to take a free vaccine, nor wear masks amidst the height of the viral spread, all while the most diverse, pro-LGBTQIA+ generation in US history joins the electorate, replacing said covidiots? OK, this might not be a parallel. But you see what I mean.

Either way, I feel cautiously optimistic about the Prez race. If only I could get similar vibes from the Ohio and Montana Senate races...

lol Tim Scott would not win over a single important Black constituency c'mon

The Tim Scott thing there he kept boasting about how he was saving himself for marriage and then years go by and he never got married did give the best setup for an amazingly awkward interview question

Trump is only looking for a more loyal lapdog than Pence, he doesn't care about growing his appeal with another politician's constituency. His campaign at this point is basically just a front for stealing or overthrowing the election and shutting down any further repercussions from there.

he should pick the scary kitchen mom demon! she is totally unhinged enough for his fanbase and everyone else would be too scared to say anything about her.

I was thinking more like matt gaetz, the lesson Trump took from pence was probably "don't pick someone you can't blackmail"

I do think that Trump cares more about staying out of jail and not having his properties seized or being forced to sell them than he does actually being President. like a normal politician probably wouldn't keep bringing up the fact that he's been charged with nearly 100 felonies and has to pay like half a billion dollars in penalties for running a sham business and being a rapist but Trump can't shut the fuck up about it. it's the only thing he thinks about. if I was conservative I'd worry a lot about Lara Trump being in charge of the RNC where she can just funnel a bunch of money to Trump's legal team at the cost of funding downballot races. I mean they're probably gonna go all "a rising tide raises all boats!" and put every cent into Trump's re-election campaign. who's gonna say no to them

I don't know a lot about how campaign finance works, but do they even have a budget to be competitive or is there not going to be an actual campaign at all?

Well he’s not gonna win it on Truth Social

the RNC has about $8m in the bank (i.e. a couple months of interest on the current fines). the DNC has $24m. in terms of campaign neither is a big player iiuc. they're more important in terms of media response and coordination.

Super PACs and dark money probably look like a better investment to the billionaires and multi-hundred millionaires who might have given to the RNC or DNC before Citizens United reconfigured the playing field.